We're coming down in July with my inlaws. When my husband and I have been down, we've stayed at Mata Rocks and love it but my inlaws like to stay in 5 star hotels :rolleyes: . I'm looking into Victoria House, any other suggestions for a top of the line hotel? Thanks!

Cayo Espanto
Casa Azul
Mata Chica
Portofino

Those are the higher end properties, there are a couple more but they're still in the construction phase.

Banyan Bay is also very nice but more of a condo complex feel.

How far do they want to be from town?

I don't think it would matter to them if we weren't close to town. They just want to go diving. Any suggestions for north end, up-scale hotels?

JSF-

We were just married at VH. I'll give them rave reviews. Put them in one of the Villa or in the Tower Suite. The staff will treat them like gold. If you have specific questions, let me know.

ditto on the rave reviews for VH, we have stayed there a dozen times, and the staff, accomodations, and amenities have always been top notch.
TIMO

If you're truly looking for decadent, Cayo Espanto is the one to look at.

You get your own private butler, private "splash pool", your own private pier, and a chef comes by every afternoon to help you plan your dinner. Walls of the bedrooms fold out so you have a total view of the water. Tiger Woods stayed there briefly, as have some other well-known celebrities. At US$1500-$2000+ a night, it should be nice!

Victoria House, Mata Chica (and the Pearl of the Caribbean), Portofino and Banyan Bay are all superb, but I wouldn't call them decadent.

Another amazing upscale option is Caye Chapel Island Resort. The villas are huge, elegant, and they come with all the golf you can handle, a golf cart, and meals in a country club setting, and essentially is what is your own big private tropical island.

Ambergris Caye (and environs) now has some of the best and most upscale luxury resorts in the entire Caribbean Basin. For those of us who started coming to Belize 15 or 20 years ago, what is available now compared to what was available then is almost impossible to believe.

--Lan Sluder

If you would be interested in places not on the island, Kanantik is pretty decadent. On the S shore of the mainland S of Hopkins. www.kanantik.com

When you say "decadent", are you referring to a state of decay or unrestrained gratification? LOL. Very odd that this same word, when describing a place could be the best available or falling apart. I was in Cuba last summer and it's a decadent paradise, meaning it's falling apart and is in decay. Gotta love the English language.

We visited most of the resorts when we were there and none of them compared to Victoria House. It was the only one that had that 'cut off from everyone' luxury. It was beautiful there and the staff were really nice but didn't seem to fit with the rest of Ambergris.